I actually did see a blog entry before specifically telling people to use poor grammar so that they wouldn’t appear snobby. I feel better knowing that’s not the case here.

]]>By: Georginahttp://www.sitepoint.com/does-grammar-even-matter-any-more/#comment-91381
Mon, 20 May 2013 00:03:29 +0000http://www.sitepoint.com/?p=66242#comment-91381Christian, great comments. Thanks for adding to the discussion. I agree with what you’ve said here—as I mention in the piece, grammar matters more now than ever for exactly the reasons you point out.

As to the point you make about my mention of “adhering to the strictest grammar rules”, that includes the old chestnut of not starting sentences with and or but … which I note you’ve done in your comment, to make a point. That’s pretty much exactly what I’m advocating here: not “dumbing down”, but writing for your audience. No need to be frightened!

]]>By: Christianhttp://www.sitepoint.com/does-grammar-even-matter-any-more/#comment-91380
Sun, 19 May 2013 04:55:18 +0000http://www.sitepoint.com/?p=66242#comment-91380“And I’m not just being a grammar nazi because often I have to re-read sentences multiple times to figure out what they’re saying when they don’t punctuate correctly.”

Exactly. Someone else here understands the real reason for good grammar and punctuation. Very refreshing. When I try to explain to people what good grammar is actually for they often say, “No, it’s not about communicating well. It’s just about you wanting to appear superior.” Nope, that’s still not it. But with the way societal trends are headed pretty soon we’ll all just be barking at each other. Heck, it works for dogs.

BTW, I have seen grammar becoming deplorable even in professional publications in the last couple years. And I do mean deplorable. One of the things happening now is everyone (and I do mean everyone) thinking that EVERY single word that ends with an ‘s’ is supposed to have an apostrophe before that ‘s.’ Examples:

* “Enjoyed some taco’s last night with my friend’s.”
* “Who get’s to take out the trash?”
* “Does anyone know where Jame’s went?” (yes, I have seen people do this)
* “Here’s an opportunity to work for one of the best company’s around.” (literally just saw this a few minutes ago)
* “We deliver fresh pizza’s.” (seen on a delivery van not far from where I live.

This particular error is becoming so rampant that it is about to become an institutionalized mistake. Don’t even get me started on 99% of all humankind now spelling “lose” as “loose.” How did this all of a sudden happen in the last three years? I’m all for creativity influencing the use of language. On the other hand, I’m scared of stupidity influencing it.

]]>By: Christianhttp://www.sitepoint.com/does-grammar-even-matter-any-more/#comment-91379
Sun, 19 May 2013 04:44:36 +0000http://www.sitepoint.com/?p=66242#comment-91379“Since communication’s more difficult in this medium, content creators have tried to make communicating as simple as possible.”

Good grammar is not about complexity, it’s not about communicating so ornately that your listener or reader can’t comprehend what you are saying. It IS about using the power of the language and the rules of grammar to convey your message simply and meaningfully.

“If you choose to adhere to the strictest grammar rules, you can be sure that you’ll alienate some users.”

100% totally incorrect… and I mean that in the politest way possible. If you choose to adhere to the strictest grammar rules what actually happens is that your user literally does not even know that you have done it; they simply read what you wrote and they comprehend it without having to spend extra time trying to discern what you really meant. Here’s the important point: good grammar is about *communicating well*. But somehow, since the advent of the Internet, and even more in the last five years, people got this inexplicably bizarre idea that the sole purpose of good grammar was so that you could appear snooty and superior to others. The corollary growing out of this was the idea that to appear down to earth and genuine you had to use poor grammar, you had to not care if you were actually communicating your ideas well.

Yes, language is dynamic and, yes, language can be used creatively, and, YES, sometimes u can haz cheezburger and, yes, rules can be bent. And that’s a wonderful thing. But to actively promote dumbing things down and using poor grammar so that you won’t alienate people or because you have the mistaken idea that good grammar is for snobs (it’s for clear communication for everyone, not for creating a caste system) is a frightening thing.

]]>By: Craig Kiesslinghttp://www.sitepoint.com/does-grammar-even-matter-any-more/#comment-91378
Sat, 18 May 2013 22:51:22 +0000http://www.sitepoint.com/?p=66242#comment-91378Although there are those rules of grammar that are frequently misunderstood and applied incorrectly, there are some “basic” rules as well. I don’t think being a “grammar nazi” is really worth the effort unless your audience would appreciate it. That being said, however, I do think going into “I can haz” type of language – when NOT used for comedy – is completely the wrong approach.

Should we also say “Oh it don’t matter no how – there is spelled over their theyre way – but we noe wat dey mean cuz were awl smart like dat”?

No thank you.

]]>By: justsayinghttp://www.sitepoint.com/does-grammar-even-matter-any-more/#comment-91377
Sat, 18 May 2013 20:39:18 +0000http://www.sitepoint.com/?p=66242#comment-91377“But” you started your sentence with the “but” :)
]]>By: Ronhttp://www.sitepoint.com/does-grammar-even-matter-any-more/#comment-91376
Sat, 18 May 2013 10:09:27 +0000http://www.sitepoint.com/?p=66242#comment-91376There’s a school of thought that prefers the study of linguistics over the teaching of traditional grammar, partly because its more pragmatic.

I personally wish more people were taught grammar, if only so that they’d have a decent base to start with before thoughtfully departing from it.

]]>By: Peter Lesliehttp://www.sitepoint.com/does-grammar-even-matter-any-more/#comment-91375
Fri, 17 May 2013 09:14:36 +0000http://www.sitepoint.com/?p=66242#comment-91375Thank you Georgina. This is a refreshing approach to the grammar issue and I agree that the key is the target audience. However, it is very rarely acceptable to use incorrect punctuation or grammar on business websites. There will always be differences of opinion on the finer points but many of the common errors will definitely lower visitors’ opinions of the business – first impressions do count and there’s no getting away from that fact.
]]>By: ralph.mhttp://www.sitepoint.com/does-grammar-even-matter-any-more/#comment-91374
Fri, 17 May 2013 02:55:45 +0000http://www.sitepoint.com/?p=66242#comment-91374“I did not understand this sentence.”

I think the point is that readers scan a page to see if there’s anything interesting, so make sure to break content up with plenty of headings, bullet lists etc.